April 26th- Vero Beach, Florida

Evergreen has been tied to a mooring in Vero for around a week. I have more pictures of the Bahamas to post and will continue the story soon. I’m behind again. I need to break away from the log to talk about something else.

In the beginning, the main reason I started this log was my Grandfather. About a year before our first southern odessy I informed him of our plans. He didn’t take this well and thought it was a bad idea. So, I just didn’t talk to him about it anymore. We got Catalpa ready for the trip. A few days before leaving, I called him and let him know we were sailing south. Ironically, our departure date was September 15th 2019, which was his birthday. As you might imagine, he was upset. I believe his response was something like, “How can you tell me this at the last minute?? This is crazy !” I felt bad about the whole conversation. I sent him a WW2 submarine book and wrote him a letter to explain how he could use his computer to get on this website. He was familiar with using email, so no problems there. I thought if he followed the log he’d see it’s not such a crazy/ dangerous trip. He followed the log religiously and we often discussed events during our phone conversations. I remember he was concerned about the amount of fuel I had on deck. He always told me to look out for sharks. He didn’t like the idea of us leaving the country for the Bahamas but was amazed at the turquoise waters in my pictures. If I was late in posting, I’d often get an email or phone call as he’d be wondering, “what’s going on?”

My Grandfather was a WW2 veteran and served in the Pacific theater. He was injured in the battle of Saipan. He always said he was done with ships and airplanes after that war. He enjoyed canoeing on a lake but would not go out on the ocean again. Still, we talked boats. Years ago I read the Hornblower series which is about the British Navy during the Napoleonic wars. I sent these books to him as I finished them. He enjoyed them and we often talked about things like top gallants, weather gage (up wind), lee shores, studding sails, and cannon. He wasn’t a mariner but certainly enjoyed reading about it and learning new things.

He lived alone for many years after my Grandmother died. Around a year ago he became sick and it was necessary for him to move into a nursing home. He could no longer use a computer and had difficulty communicating over the telephone. I miss our conversations. On April 24th, 2024 my Grandfather, Bernard Hopkins, passed away. He was 99 years old.

I would not be the person I am today without his influence. I hope he is with my Grandmother and I hope to see them both again someday.

Goodbye Pop.

Crossing The Bar (1889)